Energy storage, from a storage lake to a salt battery

The energy transition only succeeds with energy storage

🎬 Multilingual subtitles
✍️ By: Team BC1.NL

Because not all sustainably generated energy can be used on the traditional energy grid, we have to store this energy. This ‘lost’ energy could be used really well later on. For example during the winter months when there is a shortage in green energy. An additional advantage is that this can relieve and stabilize the old trusted network. But how do you store that energy long enough? Innovative entrepreneurs see new possibilities.

What is already possible with energy storage

In this documentary we show where we stand in the field of energy storage. We have made a visual overview of various already possible methods. And we talk to companies that develop new storage systems. This documentary provides an objective picture with mainly substantive answers to questions that arise while watching. This gives you a good idea of the various options that energy storage currently offers.

Delta21 combines water safety with energy storage

Delta21 energy storage lake Delta21 is a special project that deals with energy storage. Arisen from the idea to improve water safety. Now this has grown into a versatile, future-proof solution with three pillars. Energy storage, water safety and nature restoration. Using hydropower, energy can be stored in a lake. Delta21 can generate large amounts of energy in an environmentally friendly way and also store it in an environmentally friendly way.

How three Dutch provinces look at energy storage

Wind turbines Provinces in the Netherlands are also engaged in the energy transition. Therefore we asked delegates from three provinces how they view energy storage. They talk about the importance of storage and how they support innovative companies.

Storing heat in steel slag

Energy storage in stone In addition to storing electricity, we need to find ways to store heat. Cesar Energy Storage has developed a method that makes this possible in a sustainable way. They store heat in stone, like basalt and steel slags. First, a test set-up was built to prove that it works. The system is now being installed at the Ecodorp in Boekel to heat 36 homes during winter.

What a gas-fired power station still does in a grid full of sun and wind

In the Netherlands we’re all used to electricity coming from the socket. In fact, we don’t really think about this anymore. This is due to a well-designed energy network. One of the power stations in this network is Engie’s Maxima Power Station. This gas-fired power station is currently being upgraded. So that they are prepared for a future with sustainable energy sources. During the tour it becomes clear what is involved here.

Cellcius transports heat without loss

Olaf Adan at the heat battery Storing heat is a challenge in itself. Then how nice is it if you can also transport the stored heat without waste? Start-up Cellcius has developed a way for this. They can transport heat in an environmentally friendly and affordable way. With the heat battery.

Storing energy on the seabed without height difference

It’s well known that you can store energy with dam technology. Abroad there are nice examples of this. There they can use height differences. The start-up Ocean Grazer has come up with a variation on this. A system that makes it possible to use it in places without differences in height. With the Ocean Battery, energy can be stored on a large scale from, for example, offshore wind farms.

Ecovat stores heat underground for a whole neighbourhood

Ecovat Energy in the form of heat can also be stored underground. That happens at Ecovat. An intelligent system, the Ecovat, that can store heat for a long time and is used to supply entire residential areas with heat.

How businesses store their own electricity

Off the grid Entrepreneurs would like to make more use of sustainable energy such as sun and wind. But then they must be able to dispose of any surplus on the net. Because this sometimes causes problems, OTG Energy has come up with a solution. Use as much of your self-generated energy as possible. You only supply or request from the grid when it is really necessary.

Ammonia as an energy carrier for large volumes

Ammonia as an energy carrier It is said that we cannot generate enough sustainable energy in Europe. After all, we have a growing energy need. How can we ensure that we no longer have to use fossil energy? We regularly hear stories about hydrogen. However, it can also be done differently, as Proton Ventures shows. Import renewable energy by transporting it in the form of ammonia.

AquaBattery makes a battery from water and table salt

Even ordinary table salt can be used to store energy. AquaBattery developed a system for this. Completely sustainable using water and salt. This stored energy can later be used as electricity.

Battolyser stores electricity and makes hydrogen at the same time

Finally, we go to Battolyser Systems, where they’ve merged two existing systems. You just have to think of it. However, this allows them to respond even better to the wishes of their customers. They put a battery and an electrolyser together and call it the Battolyser. The Battolyser can be used to stabilize the energy grid. This will be very important during the energy transition.

In this documentary we have highlighted a number of special storage systems. However, there are even more beautiful new developments. Unfortunately, it is not possible to highlight all these systems in one documentary.

Also interesting:
Flevoland makes room for circular entrepreneurship
Hydrogen the documentary

Frequently asked questions

This is a short summary of the film. Watch the video above for the full story.

What is energy storage and why is it needed?

Generating renewable energy works well by now, but sun and wind do not deliver at the moment you happen to need power. Energy storage bridges that gap, keeping what is left over and using it when there is too little. In the film it is called the greatest challenge of the energy transition. You can invest in green energy, but if you cannot store it and use it, the whole transition process starts to falter.

What energy storage is there for businesses?

In the film OTG Energy fits a meter in the meter cupboard that sees whether power is going to the grid or coming from it, and the system charges or discharges on that basis. Everything generated on site stays on site as long as possible, and only a real surplus goes to the grid. The batteries are lithium iron phosphate units of 48 volts, safe to touch and with a high ignition temperature. For the winter months a fuel cell turns hydrogen back into electricity, buffered in those same batteries.

What methods are there for storing energy?

Ten of them appear in the film, from very large to very small. An energy storage lake at sea. Storing heat in steel slag. Ammonia as an energy carrier, where two tanks holding 30,000 tonnes are good for about 0.1 terawatt hours. An underground heat buffer 30 metres across and 30 metres deep, holding 20 million litres of water, enough for a whole neighbourhood. A battery on the seabed. A battery that runs on water and ordinary table salt. And a Battolyser, which stores electricity and makes hydrogen at the same time. The companies behind these systems are Delta21, which combines water safety, energy storage and nature restoration, Cesar Energy Storage with heat in stone, Cellcius with a heat battery that transports heat without loss, Ocean Grazer with storage on the seabed, Ecovat with the underground heat buffer, OTG Energy which helps businesses use their own electricity, Proton Ventures with ammonia, AquaBattery with water and table salt, and Battolyser Systems which combines a battery and an electrolyser.

Can one device store electricity and make hydrogen?

Yes. Battolyser Systems in Schiedam combined a battery and an electrolyser in a single device. When there is plenty of sun and wind it stores the electricity the way a battery does, and turns the surplus into hydrogen. When electricity is needed it feeds back into the grid. That way it absorbs peaks and helps keep the grid stable.

Can heat be stored underground for a whole neighbourhood?

That is what Ecovat does. At the test site in Uden the heat buffer sits sixteen metres underground, with only a container above it. About ten percent of the heat is lost, so ninety percent of what is stored in summer is still available in winter. The vessel is fed by any available source: geothermal, aquathermal and solar heat, as well as industrial waste heat that currently disappears into the air or the water.

Can renewable energy be transported as ammonia instead of hydrogen?

In the film, Proton Ventures explains this idea. In their view Europe cannot generate enough renewable energy itself, while demand keeps growing. The plan is to import renewable energy and move it in the form of ammonia, as an alternative to the hydrogen that is usually talked about. It is a direction that is explained, not something that is already running.

Where can I watch the full film?

These questions and answers are a short summary. Watch the full film "The energy transition only succeeds with energy storage" with all insights, examples and background at https://www.bc1.eu/the-energy-transition-only-succeeds-with-storage/